Frequently asked questions in the "Forum" that usually go unanswered
Video
Q. Where do I find video drivers for my Presario 1200/1600 series Laptop?
A. Depending on which model you have. Check out the main page for your model number and click on that line. If your model number is not listed, drop me an email and I will email you the correct driver and add your model number to the correct list.
Q. Why does my display panel look brighter on the top half and lighter on the bottom (or vice-versa)?
A. The Presarios have one of two types of different display panels: HPA or TFT. The TFT is much more expensive to produce and is easily jolted into malfunction. HPA is used in most of the Presarios because it is cheap, usually durable, and consumes less power (extends battery life).
Q. What are the maximum resolutions for the display panel?
A. 800x600 is recommended resolution for your laptop, regardless of model number.
Q. Can I upgrade the video card for more memory? I have a game that requires 16meg of video memory.
A. No, the Presarios were not meant for playing games. The internal memory is soldered to the motherboard and is not user upgradeable.
Q. My display panel is broke and my warranty is out of date, how much is it going to cost me? Are there any sources other than Compaq?
A. Any Compaq authorized dealer can repair your laptop, and YES it will be expensive (usually 50% of the price you paid for the laptop)
Audio
Q. Where do I find audio drivers for my Presario 1200/1600 series Laptop?
A. Depending on which model you have. Check out the main page for your model number and click on that line.
Q. Who makes the soundcard in my Presario? I have a game and it asks for a brandname or IRQ to setup the sound effects.
A. Try one of these sites:
Support page for ESS soundcards:
http://www.esstech.com/Technical/drivers/downloadable/drivers/driver.htm
Support page for VIA soundcards:
http://www.viatech.com/drivers/index.htm
Modem
Q. Where do I find modem drivers for my Presario 1200/1600 series Laptop?
A. Depending on which model you have and which operating system. Check out the main page for your model number and click on that line.
Q. What kind of modem is in my Presario?
A. 90% of the modems that come with Presarios are manufactured by Lucent Technologies. The most common modem in a Presario is a HF LTModem.
Q. I thought this modem was 56k...Why can't I connect at anything higher that 33K?
A. A variety of reasons may exist as to why you can't connect at a reasonable speed (40-52K). The most likely is that the protocol that your modem is using is not the protocol that your ISP (Internet Service Provider) is using, causing the modem to fall back to the standardized protocol at 28.8/33.6K. You can remedy this by calling your Internet provider and asking them if they are using KFlex or V90. Change your protocol to match that of your ISP. You still may not see much of a difference due to quality of phone lines in your area.
Q. Can I replace the modem inside my laptop with another modem? What are the specs?
A. You may use either a modem plugged into COM1 or a PCMCIA modem. Both require you to reconfigure your CONTROL PANEL's MODEM section. You must DISABLE the HFModem before installing a modem plugged into one of these ports.
Q. Lightning hit my computer (or my son spilled coffee in the keyboard). Now my modem won't even dial out or make a sound. Any suggestions?
A. Buy a PCMIA modem as a replacement. They will run you about $70 for a good 56k model.
Q. Can I hook a cable modem up to my laptop? Better yet, can I do that AND still network the internet speed to another computer?
A. You sure can... your computer will interface with the cable modem through a 10/100 Ethernet Network Interface Card (NIC) that is a cartridge that plugs into your PCMIA port. Use a hub to share the broadband access to other computers.
Q. I don't know which protocol my modem is set to (KFlex or V90) but it sucks and I want to try the other protocol...How do I change over?
A. Check out this page for V90 protocol.
The modem drivers on the main page contain the KFlex protocol.
Q. Does Lucent have a Support Site with new drivers for the Win2K and WinME for their modem?
A. Sadly, Lucent's support for their modem is not much better than Compaq's support for your computer....but there is an unofficial support site with new drivers!!! It's located at:
http://www.808hi.com/56k/ltwin.htm
CD ROM Drive
Q. Where do I find CDROM drivers for my Presario 1200/1600 series Laptop?
A. You can boot from a startup disk created by the same version of Windows that exists on your system. One of the options is to "Boot with CD ROM active"
Q. Why is my CDROM having such a hard time reading a CDR?
A. CDR's are writeable media...they are manufactured and sold by many different sources, resulting in sometimes flaky and cheap materials. The problem is most likely not with your CDROM, but with the quality of the medium (dye) that it is trying to read.
Q. Can I upgrade my CDROM to DVD? How much and where do I get it done?
A. If your Presario did not come with DVD, the only alternative is to get an external drive.
DVD
Q. Where do I find DVD drivers for my Presario 1200/1600 series Laptop?
A. --still working on this--
Hard Drive
Q. My hard drive makes a grinding noise....is this normal?
A. No, you should immediately back that Harddrive up and have it replaced as soon as possible...it's ready to fail on you.
Q. I have run out of space on my harddrive. How can I upgrade to a larger hardrive? What are the costs? Where can I get a hardrive?
A. Yes...but you should ask yourself this question..."I paid $1200 for this laptop...is it worth spending $250 more to have the HD bigger? Or should I get a new laptop?
Battery
Q. When I first bought my laptop, I got 2 or 3 hours out of the battery, now 3 months later- I'm lucky to get ten minutes...what's up?
A. You may need to upgrade your BIOS...check out this COMPAQ SoftPaq to see if your model is affected
Q. What are the specs on my battery and where can I get more?
A. *
Memory
Q. What is the maximum amount of memory (RAM) I can have and where can I get more?
A. *
Touchpad
Q. Where do I find touchpad drivers for my Presario 1200/1600 series Laptop?
A. You may need to upgrade your BIOS...check out this COMPAQ SoftPaq to see if your model is affected
Q. My cursor jumps around when I use the touchpad and sometimes it locks the computer up...how can I fix this?
A. You may need to upgrade your BIOS...check out this COMPAQ SoftPaq to see if your model is affected
Restore CD / Manual
Q. I lost the Restore CD to my Presario laptop. Where can I get a new one?
A. You can call Compaq Customer Service at 1-800-841-2761. Ask for the RESTORE CD for your model.
Q. I lost the manual to my laptop....what are the specifications and some information about it?
A. Replacement manuals are available from Compaq by calling: 1-800-652-6672
Computer Freezes Up
Q. My computer freezes up every time I connect to the internet...what's up?
A. Most likely, you have MS Internet Explorer 5.0 and you need to skip that troublesome version all the way to 5.5 or get out of Bill Gates pocket and move up to Netscape Navigator. This should solve your problem. As a side note, if you upgrade to WinME, MS Internet Explorer 5.5 comes built in to that version and you don't have to sweat this problem. If you are using MSIE v5.0 or lower, upgrade to v5.5 by clicking HERE.
Spare Parts List for Presario 1200 Series
Q. I got my Presario as a gift, or I have lost the manual. Is there anywhere that I can get a Parts List? Is there anywhere that I can find out what I can upgrade my harddrive to and the Compaq part number for that harddrive?
A. You are in luck, Compaq has been recently upgrading their website and I ran across this interesting link. You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view it (get it FREE at www.adobe.com).
Click here when you have Adobe Acrobat installed.
Known Problems/Issues with WinME and Presarios
Upgrading from Windows 95 to 98
Upgrading from Windows 98 to 98se
Upgrading from Windows 98 to ME
Upgrading from Windows 98 to Win2000
Upgrading from Windows NT to Win2000
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